Oh ! SHANGHAI

2012 is the Year of the Dragon. The Dragon is the most auspicious and powerful of the 12 Chinese Zodiac signs, one associated with high energy and prosperity. The Dragon has five elemental signs - Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. 2012  year is considered especially auspicious because it is the year of The  Water Dragon which is believed to  bestow the Chinese Five Blessings of harmony, virtue, riches, fulfillment and longevity. Morever it has arrived after a period of SIXTY long years. Dragons are mythical powerful creatures worshiped by Chinese culture. A Dragon symbolizes strength, health, harmony, and intellect. There is a belief  in China that the Dragon people are extremely lucky and blessed. The belief have many expectant mothers to plan their  babies in the Dragon Year. Couples tying the knot in the Dragon year look forward to a life of martial bliss.  Maybe Shanghai attracted us as a destination to be visited during the auspicious Year of the Water Dragon.

Shanghai the City of dreams of the People's Republic of China is located in the Yangtze River Delta in eastern China, and situated at the mouth of the Yangtze River in the middle portion of the Chinese coast. Shanghai in Chinese means "Upon the sea". The Mean Sea Level of Shanghai is around 10 feet. Shanghai is the financial and commercial capital of China. The city is at which the top of the recall when one thinks of mainland China. A city booming with a population of 23 million is the show case of business, infrastructure, fashion, consumerism and is China's golden land of opportunity.

The Treaty of Nanking 1842 ending the First opium war between Great Britain and Qing Dynasty of China opened the port of Shanghai for free trade till 1943  The Treaty of the Bogue signed in 1843, and the Sino American Treaty of Wanghia signed in 1844 forced Chinese concession to European and American desires for visitation and trade on Chinese soil. Britain, France, and the United States all carved out concessions outside the walled city of Shanghai  in  the areas that they controlled and where Chinese law did not apply. Most of these were jointly administered as the " Shanghai International Settlement", The Central District of Shanghai were the domain of the British,  Northern and Eastern District were the settlement of the Americans and  French concession between the Chinese North Gate and Central District. These settlements and concessions shaped Shanghai's cityscape significantly. In 1949 the People Liberation Army took control over Shanghai and most foreign firms moved their offices from Shanghai to Hong Kong, as part of an exodus of foreign investment due to the Communist victory.Shanghai was finally permitted to initiate economic reforms in 1991, and in a decade time Shanghai has become a yardstick to measure the development and infrastructure for other cities around the world. In my mind the World Expo 2010 held at Shanghai with a theme Better City - Better life kick started  to make Shanghai the show piece of Mainland China.

The People's Republic of China follows the international system and issues visas according to its laws and regulations which may be modified from time to time. Tourist Visa (L) is issued to aliens who are going to China for tourism, visiting family or other private affairs. The Chinese Consulate General in India have introduced Chinese Visa Application Service Centres ( CVASC) in Mumbai and New Delhi.  VFS Global Services Pvt. Ltd., CVASC is a commercial entity completely independent from the Chinese Embassy or the Consulate General. CVASC is responsible for receiving visa applications for visit to mainland China from ordinary passport holders who are Indian citizens and citizens of other countries possessing Indian permanent residence or work permits, collecting visa fees on behalf of the Chinese Embassy or the Chinese Consulate General and returning processed visa applications.  

One should apply about one month in advance of the intended date of entry into China, and do not apply 3 months earlier than your intended date of entry.Application can be downloaded from the CVASC site and application submitted to the Service Center  along with requisite complete travel documents, stay arrangements and six months bank statements to support their finances  to cover their visit to China. Visas are processed in four working days and fees are collected before issuance of Visa. There is a provision of Express Service where Visa are processed by the next working day  at an additional cost. We found CVASC  very professional and efficient in Mumbai

Chinese Visa Application Service Center

Shanghai has two Airports Shanghai Pudong International Airport ( PVG )  serving Shanghai, China, and a major aviation hub in Asia. The other major airport in Shanghai, Hongqiao, mainly serves domestic flights. Located about 55 kilometres east of the city centre, Pudong Airport occupies a 40 square kilometres site adjacent to the coastline in eastern Pudong.

There are many modes of Transportation between Pudong Airport and Shanghai City Center. Airport Shuttle Buses handles the transfer of passengers to various City Hotels. The famed Shanghai Maglev Train operates between Pudong International Airport and Longyang Road.  Trains depart from Pudong Airport Subway Station every day from 06:45 to 21:40 at intervals of 15 to 20 iminutes..There is also a Subway Line 2 connecting Pudong and Puxi stretching to Hongqiao Airport. Passengers have to get off  the train at Guanglan Road Station and then change another metro train to go ahead. The subway operates from 0630 HRS to 2300 HRS

Our flight China Eastern Airlines  from Hong Kong landed in Pudong Airport, Shanghai around 2100 HRS. The airport area was huge but the area was not lit up to have the desired effect. The famed Pudong International Airport was below our expectations. It took us considerable time to reach the designated aerobridge. On deplaning, we walked airport area which was like any other modern international airport taking cue from the sign ages leading to the immigration counters. The immigration checks were swift. However a few questions fortunately in  English were asked about our reasons for trip to Shanghai and our departure plans before our passports were immigration stamped.

On having completed our immigration formalities, we picked our luggage and stood in queue at the only counter available for Chinese currency. The currency in Mainland China is CNY (Chinese Renminbi Yuan.  The denominations are 1 CNY = 10 Jiao = 100 Fen. 
XE - Universal Currency Converter

By the time we got over the formalities and necessities  at the Pudong International airport, Shanghai it was well past 2300 HRS. The famed Maglev train had shut its operations for the night. The last Shanghai Metro train on the Subway line 2 to the Shanghai City centre had left. Since we were booked in a Service Apartment in downtown Shanghai, there was no designate shuttle bus available. The Airport looked to be closing for the night and no way it gave a feel of a International Airport. 

The transportation options dwindled, as  deeper we got into the night and with family, kids, luggage and in a new country we had  no other option than to take a taxi which could carry all six of us. A few enquiries led us to a prepaid taxi counter. The rate of CNY 600 was exorbitant by any standards, but then again our options were limited. We had to make our journey in an unknown place and that too in the middle of the night. It dawned on us that we had made a mistake in scheduling our flights to Shanghai so late at night.

In Shanghai it will be a rare to find a taxi driver knowing to speak English. One has to carry a hand written or computer printed address in both Chinese and English. On hailing a taxi, one has to hand over sheet of paper and the taxi driver drops you at the address.

Our taxi driver made it clear that he will be unable to converse in English. We handed him the printed address, of our Service apartment in Jing An District of Shanghai.We took the T2 though A20 Expressway, A1 (Yingbin Dadao) and then Shanghai North-South Elevated Freeway to downtown Shanghai. The journey was made in silence with uneasy thoughts, as we drove through into the heart of Shanghai late in the night. We hit our destination all safe and sound after an hours travel.

We were elated to reach our apartment. But subsequent experience was a nightmarish. As we walked into the reception of the service apartment we were greeted by the only night receptionist who was unable to speak a word of English. We showed the receptionist our confirmed reservations. After a few telephone calls, our passports were collected and photocopied. Then the receptionist made a series of signs which we could not comprehend. He seems to be at his wits end, almost tearing his hair out. At last he pulled out his wallet and showed us his credit card. Looks he was wanting advance payments through our credit cards. On being shown that full payments has already being made, another series of telephone calls were made by him and after a series of signs and indications from both parti, we were handed over the keys to the Service apartment. The service apartment was a neat and a good pad with a drawing room, modular open kitchen and two bedroom with attached clean toilets. We settled down for the night with  sleep taking over our thoughts  of our expectations of another day in Shanghai.

We woke up with the morning chill of 18 degree C taking us by surprise. There was signs of overnight rains in the vicinity. The sight through our bedroom windows was full of high rise apartment buildings with the main road full of cars, two wheelers and bicycles. It was time to venture out,  first to avail a mobile connections and another to locate the nearest Metro station. The Metro station because the subway is the most manageable of all the transport regardless of the language, fewer stops and easy to learn what parts of city can be reached. Shanghai has a good bus system but the key to the bus system is which stop it is and which stop to get down. One has to have a fair good idea of the bus routes and plus the language barrier is another handicap to travel around in a bus in Shanghai.

The night receptionist was replaced by a couple of smart looking people. One of them could speak English too. After taking directions, we walked towards the market looking for a mobile shop. At every shop or establishment we entered we were greeted with a smile and waving of hands stating that they could not converse in  English. We had half a mind of taking the next flight out of Shanghai. As we walked up and down the streets of Jing An District we could locate a shop which had mobile accessories. Fortunately we could make the shop keeper understand and at long last we manged two mobile connections. Later we found out that to have a International call facility one had to wait for three months. Further it was not easy for us to locate a Public telephone booth to make an International call back home. 

Armed with the mobile connection, we went on an hunt for the nearest Metro Station. We tried all the methods of explaining to people of our target the nearest Metro Station through sign and body  language and even making sketches of the train. We were turned down with the familiar sign of hand No English and a smile. Finally a lady in one of the  banks assisted us in  broken English the way to the nearest Metro Station Jiangsu Lu.  

ExploreShanghai | Shanghai Metro map | ExploreShanghai

 The Shanghai Metro the lifeline of our stay in Shanghai has eleven metro lines, with two hundred and seventy eight stations and over four hundred thirty four kilometers of tracks in operation and the system continues to grow.  The Shanghai Metro delivered 2.1 billion rides estimated to be the fifth busiest Metro in the world 

There are two types of interchange stations: physical interchange and virtual interchange stations. In a physical interchange station, passengers can transfer between subway lines without exiting a fare zone. In a virtual interchange station, however, passengers have to exit and re-enter fare zones as they transfer from one subway line to another.

In order to receive a discounted fare, passengers use a Shanghai Public Transport Card (SPTC) .  While passengers with single-ride tickets must exit and re-enter at these stations to transfer between lines (and therefore re-purchase tickets), Public Transportation Card holders are charged as if the two segments were one, as long as they re-enter within 30 minutes after they exited the other station. Fares are also reduced during this process.

Moreover these SPTC cards can be utilised to travel in taxis, local buses, ferry and Metro Lines. It also helps to skip long queues at the Metro Ticket booth and there is no need to  ask the ticket conductor about the cost of tickets and the destination as very few will know to converse in English.One can buy and load the SPTC card in any of the Metro Stations and various stores. As you pass through the turnstyle machines at the exit station necessary debits will be calculated and the card debited. Balance too is displayed as one exits We purchased the SPTC cards with a deposit of 20 Yuan for each card and loaded them sufficiently to travel around Shanghai.  

The first destination of tourist visit to any city or place is to hit the main square. Further every communist city usually  has an imposing public square to showpiece the world. Shanghai has People's Square.Prior to 1949, People's Square was a part of the horse racing course of Shanghai. After gambling and horse racing were banned, a part of the race course became the People's Square. It is also used as the standard reference point for measurement of distance in the Shanghai municipality.In the 1990s, major changes were made to the square. The Shanghai Municipal Government was moved from the former HSBC Building, and the Shanghai Museum was moved away from the old racetrack. More recent additions include the Shanghai Grand Theater and the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall.Other parts of the race course still remain today. The clubhouse buildings became the Shanghai Art Museum, while part of the race track became People's Park, a beautiful and well maintained public park. 

We walked a kilometre and a half to reach the subway station Jiangsu Lu. Swiped our SPTC cards at the turnstile  passed our bags through the security scanner and rode the Metro to People Park on Line 2. It is the busiest subway station in the Shanghai Metro system where Line 1, 2 & 8 operate. In view of interchange station for three lines, it is extremely crowded during peak hours. Further due to the vicinity of shopping and tourist destinations it remains more or less crowded even during the day. There are 17 exits from the People Square station, which gives a fare idea of the passengers the station handles.

We took the exit 1 of People Square subway station and walked into the Shanghai Art Museum which is located at West Nanjing Road and housed in a building designed in 1930 style British architecture. The artwork  in the twelve exhibit hall  ranging  from modern traditional oil to recent canvases and sculptures. It displays a huge collection of photographs. The gallery is a modern art museum serving various floors functions. It collects art works, holds exhibitions, conducts extensive academic exchanges, popularizes aesthetic education and promotes communication between China and the world. The restored wood and marble interiors of this five story, neoclassical landmark  building was equally impressive. In addition to the artwork there is a classy American restaurant  Kathleen's 5 on the fifth floor.

Having feasted our eyes to the exhibits we planned to visit the world famous Shanghai Museum.  A Chinese lady overheard us  as we approached the reception for directions to the Shanghai Museum. 
The lady agreed to show us the way. In broken English we manged to        introduce ourselves and kept talking    as                                                as we walked,  wanting to know about our Indian cultural. It was fun to walk with the Chinese local and she only left us when we reached the entrance of the Shanghai Museum.  Our sincere thanks to the lovely lady who extended us the assistance and hospitality in locating the Shanghai Museum or else it would have been difficult for us to reach our destination. We parted  but not before we exchanged our photographs with each others camera.                                                      

The Shanghai Museum is a world famous museum of ancient Chinese Art with an estimated 8000 daily entries.  The Museum building is shaped with a square base and a round top attached with arches like a bronze Ding indicating the ancient Chinese philosophy of the universe that the earth is square while the sky is round. In front of the building stand eight imposing marble statues of guardian lions. The museum has an estimated one million pieces of the collections and most of them are national treasures. There are galleries of Bronze of unique shapes, delicate decor and superb techniques will tell us the 1500 year of the great Chinese Bronze age. The Sculpture Gallery show how Buddhism harmonized with the Chinese traditional culture over the years. The Painting Gallery unfolding the glorious history of Chinese Painting. Then there was the Galleries of Seal, Calligraphy, Jade, Ming and Qing furniture, Chinese currency , ancient Silk Road Coins and the Chinese Ceramics tracing 8000 years of Chinese Ceramic history. We experienced the history and fabulous artistic creation of China. One needs a whole days time to go around the fantastic galleries of the Shanghai Museum.

Shanghai is a world famous shoppers paradise. The ladies here are very fashion conscious and they like to show off the latest brands of the world.  Nanjing Road starts at the Bund in the East and ends in the West at Jing'an Temple. It is a must see metropolis destination attracting thousands of fashion seekers. shoppers all around the world. An estimated one million people visit Nanjing Road daily.  It is one of the earliest shopping streets started by the British Concessions after the opium war. For the convenience of the shoppers the East Nanjing Road has an all weather pedestrian arcade The East Nanjing Road and pedestrian mall ends at People's Square and from there the West Nanjing Road begins featuring a number of  upmarket malls, hotels and Office buidings. The showpiece of the brands is the West Nanjing  Road where one can find the latest brands which craze the world.

The next day we rode the Subway Line 2 from Jiangsu Road to People Square on Line 2 and changed over to Line 11 and reached Metro Station XuJiaHui. Just a few minutes outside the subway station is the famous  XuJiaHui Square which  is the biggest shopping destinations of Shanghai. The development at Xujiahui has in the last ten years has kept pace with the development of Shanghai. Today the place boasts a galaxy of well-known malls Grand Gateway, Orient Shopping Center, Pacific, Shanghai LiuBai, HuiJin Department store, Pacific Digital Plaza, Metro City, Sunrise Department store, HuiLian Department store, etc. The Shanghainese enjoy shopping at Xujiahui due to its close proximity of the subway and a choice of number of modern and fashionable malls. The ladies constitute the bulk of the shoppers, and most off the Malls are  oriented to ladies goods.  Xujiahui is also a famous destination of Shanghai for electronics items with Metro City and Pacific Digital Plaza leading the way. In case one  has a fascination for electronic goods, when in Shanghai, a visit to the Electronic mall is a must destination.  The Metro City building looks like a large glass golf ball and the whole mall contains an array of latest computers, cameras, laptops, phones mp3s, TVs, DVDs.  Usually one of the staff members speaks a little English. There is a lot of bargaining even on branded products. Shanghai is a famous destination for cyber market, and people do not look out for a guarantee or receipt. Prices are low and negotiable but how long everything will last is another matter. However, visit to  Xujiahui was a good  shopping experience, the crowd was good, the infrastructure was awesome and gave us an insight of development taking place in China.

After a quick lunch at a McDonald, we rode the subway on Line 11 from Xjiahui to South Shanxi Road. Crossed over  to Line 10 and again rode the subway to Yayauan Garden. As we walked towards the garden we came across the buildings of classical Chinese architecture with the eaves of the roofs stretching out towards the sky . We gasped at the beauty of the buildings and our cameras flashed. For the first time we felt that we were in real China.  

Yayauan Gardens is a famous classical garden finished in 1577 AD by a Government Officer of Ming Dynasty named Pan Yunduan. Yu in Chinese means pleasing and satisfying. This garden was specially built for Pan's parents as a place for them  to enjoy a tranquil and happy time in their old age. The scenic spots are the wall of cloud piercing Dragon, spring transforming hall, Jade exquisite, Moon appreciating pavilion. The  various chambers are Yuhua Hall, Sansui Hall, Wanhua Chamber, Dianchun Hall, Huijing Hall and the inner garden.The true treasure of the Yayauan Gardens is the exquisite Jade Rock. It is one of the three famous rocks in the southern region of the Yangtze River.

As evening set in it was time to move to the Bund. Moreover, we were looking forward to meet our old boarding school mate and we had promised to meet at the Bund. The Bund is the cultural section of Shanghai that best represents the blending of ancient and modern influences. This renowned waterfront district is the city's most famous landmark. Local people honor the Huangpu River as Mother River, and as you view the lights and spectacle from the main the deck of your evening cruise, you will understand why. It has been the center of Shanghai's politics, economy and culture for more than hundred yeras. The Bund has many of the Neo classical Beaux Art and Art Demo historical buildings lined along the Huangpu River which once housed the numerous Consulates, banks and trading houses from the erstwhile Shanghai International Settlement of British, Americans, France, Russia etc. The Bund houses twenty six buildings  of various architectural style like Gothic, Baroque, Romanesque, Classicism, Renaissance and has being named as the Gallery of World Architecture.When night falls and the lights are on, all buildings are lit with colorful lights, glistening and dazzling to the eye. Further the lit skyline of Pudong  other side of the Bund was awesome and in my view should be rated one of the best night view sites. The cheapest way to cross the River Huangpu from Puxi to Pudong is to take ferry from the Bund near Yan'an Donglu. A more expensive way is to cross through the Bund Sightseeing Tunnel (north of Peace Hotel) which is basically a underground travelator featuring several minutes of blinking lights. Yan'an Tunnel is the main roads for cars and taxis. There is no bridge for  to cross over, and the options are  metro, taxi, ferry, sightseeing tunnel and bus. We met our old school mate along with his European wife at a rather interesting Restaurant which has been located at a erstwhile Lighthouse a past emblem of  Old World Shanghai. We walked up the spiral staircase of this old Lighthouse and the third floor opened to reveal a beautiful place that gave a panoramic view of the Bund and modern Pudong, It was a fitting place for a reunion with  an old friend after a gap of thirty five years.  The conversion turned to Chinese  cuisines and our host suggested to try out the Chinese Hotpot. The Hotpot is a creation of the Chinese with a 2000 years history. It is extremely favored by the Chinese especially in winter, it is an ideal choice for a warm family get together. The dining custom of the hotpot is having a copper pot in the center of the table with a gas stove underneath, containing a simmering soup base. Various food materials are placed in to the pot, including sliced mutton, chicken, leafy vegetables, mushrooms, glass noodles, frozen bean curd and sea food. The foods are cooked only for a few seconds after placing into the boiling soup and then can be eaten with a dipping sauce. Indeed a memorable evening in Shanghai.

The next morning we planned to visit  Pudong, an area a decade ago was an agriculture land, a country side only connected by ferries. Today Pudong reflects to the world the modern Shanghai, The Chinese take pride of the development as it is their own creation. Many of the best known buildings and landmarks of Shanghai such as Shanghai Stock Exchange, Oriental Pearl Tower, Jin Mao Building - The Shanghai Financial Center are located in Pudong.  These modern skyscrapers face the remnant of the old Shanghai concessions with only the Huangpu River separating the old and the new face of Shanghai.


We rode the Metro on Line 2 to Century Park, the largest ecological park in Shanghai. The park landscaping combines Japanese, British and Chinese gardening styles, The Park has traditional Chinese Gardens, lakes, open grassland and forests. It has cycle cars, amusement parks, boating, picnic spots and running tracks and lots and lots of fresh air. The park is fondly known as the Holiday park where one can spend a whole day with family and friends, indeed a gift for the people of Shanghai.

      Close to the Century Park is China's most visited museum, The Shanghai                                                                                                              
Science and Technology Museum.It is  science land with nature, culture and technology. It attracts millions of people every year. The museum has thirteen permanent exhibitions - World of Robots, Information Era, Home on Earth, Light of Exploration, Human and Health, Spectrum of life, Animal world, Spiders, Children Rainbow land, Space Navigation, Earth's exploration, Light of Wisdom , Crafts of Design and four science theaters - Imax 3D, Imax Dome, IWERKS and Space Theater. 

The hi-tech science museum has exhibits for all ages and has different suggested tours for the family, adults, teenagers and the elderly. The exhibits were awesome and at times left us spell bound and for each one of us it was a day well spent. It also gave us an insight of the Chinese concern for education and investments for innovations.

It was time to pack our bags and leave Shanghai to our next destination Macau. We planned to ride the famed Maglev Train on our way to the Pudong International Airport. The Maglev Train is a magnetic suspension train.The train does not  touch the rail tracks but floats over a magnetic barrier separating the train from the the tracks beneath. The Maglev Technology is generation of controllable electromagnetic field by exciting on board levitation magnets and the magnets along the guideway, thereby attracting each other, thus pulling the train upward and a stable levitation gap ranging between 8 and 12 mm  is maintained by controlling the levitation excitation current.The 30 KM stretch from Longyang Road Metro Station to Pudong Airport is covered within eight minutes, touching a maximum speed of 431 KM/Hour. It is a joint effort of the Germans and Chinese Technology that the Maglev Train is in place. It is one of its kind in the world to be operating commercially. Maglev is the future of mass transportation program and a show piece for the world tourists to acknowledge China's strength  in the field of engineering and technology.         

We were fortunate to get two  taxis  to drop us at the Jiangsu Lu Metro Station, a distance of one and half kilometer. We planned to take the subway from Jiangsu Lu to Longyang to ride the Maglev  for the Airport.  In Shanghai unlike other cities has a check in system for airlines at City Air Terminal Office, Jingam Temple only for domestic Airport Hongqiao. Hence we had no way but to carry our luggage on the subway. As usual at the subway turnstle the security insisted on security check of the luggage through the X ray machine. The smaller bags went through the process but one of the bigger bags got stuck in the X ray machine. Most of the security personnel joined in  pulling and pushing the bag but the bag remained stuck. Already we were getting delayed for the flight and panic was setting in when thoughts crossed our minds that we may have to wait for services of the X ray machine company technicians. However the bag came out after a few stops and starts of the machine. As we breathe a sigh a relief, the security personnel insisted on the security checks through the X ray machine of the remaining bags. Fortunately the bags went through the X ray machine without any issues. 

We availed the subway at Jiangsu Lu on Line 2 to Longyang Road Metro Station. and the escalator to the upper deck where the marvelous sight of the Maglev Train awaited us. There is a museum of the Maglev train at Longyang Station which we had to skip because of paucity of time. The train attendants guided us to our seats. The interiors were flush and royal. The seats were aeroplane style. All carriages were equipped with the racks and space designated for luggage.  

The Maglev Train was one of  our main attractions of visiting Shanghai and we were very excited of taking the ride. As we took our seats, we looked around for seat belts, apprehensive of the speed, but there were none. As the train started we could feel a slight lift and slowly the train began take off like the Olympians taking off from their blocks. As the train reached to the maximum speed of 430 KM/Hour, the trees and buildings blurred  creating a awesome effect. It gave a thrilling feeling of feeling free wheeling and one cannot explain the thrill till one takes a ride on the Maglev Train. 
            

The Maglev Train ride was fitting finale of our visit to Shanghai and as we boarded the China Eastern Airlines  to take us to our next destination Macau, we knew in our hearts that we will cherish the memories of visit to Shanghai. We also take the opportunity for extending our sincere gratitude and thanks for the wonderful stay, the warmth and hospitality of the Shaghainese and wishing the best of times to one and all during the Year of the Water Dragon .